Drive through the same highway work zone enough times and it might start to feel like a permanent part of your life — maybe even like an old friend. Think about it: You’re accustomed to its presence — It has been there in the same place, day after day, for weeks or even months. It’s part of your routine — You add 10 or 15 minutes to your commute, to compensate for the work zone, without knowing you’re doing it. It’s a landmark — If you’ve ever said, “I’m almost to the work zone,” to share your location, the work zone is a permanent part of life. We’ll stop short of calling work zones your fr ..read more

Work zones are temporary. But our actions inside work zones can last forever. That’s the message our industry will share with this year’s National Work Zone Awareness Week April 15-19. This message reminds drivers their actions — such as speeding or driving while distracted — in work zones can cause life-changing injuries or even fatalities. How can we, as the InfraStripe family of companies, share this message with as many drivers as possible? By participating in Work Zone Awareness Week, and by remembering that awareness campaigns work best when we embrace them fully. In that sense, our acti ..read more

How do you define “traffic?” If you’re like most Americans, you picture taillights, turn signals, and exit-only lanes. This is understandable. In the 20th century, planners built or redesigned almost all of our roads, streets, and bridges with pavement markings to serve motorized vehicles. 21st century planners have been busy reimagining our roads and streets. It’s part of the “Complete Streets” movement, and it focuses on making our roads safer for motorized vehicles along with other forms of travel, including bicycling and walking. Statistics Show a Rise in Pedestrian and Cyclist Deaths The ..read more

AAA expects about one in seven Americans to travel this year for Thanksgiving. With so many cars on the road, it’s inevitable: Some of us will sit in snarled traffic. Some of us may even be delayed for hours. How can you reduce your odds of sitting in traffic for hours this holiday? By timing your trip well. First, a full disclosure: Even the best timing won’t guarantee smooth sailing. In fact, nothing can guarantee you won’t hit bad traffic at some point during your trip. Traffic conditions change every second and with no warning. But smart timing can lower your odds of hitting one of those t ..read more

Shouldn’t you always stop when a school bus deploys its stop sign and flashing red lights? The answer to this question surprises some drivers. In most states, drivers should not stop for a school bus: If they’re traveling in the opposite direction of the bus on a multi-lane highway And if the multi-lane highway is divided by a grass or unpaved median Drivers in this scenario should keep moving with caution. Not all states follow this rule. In West Virginia, Mississippi, and New York, for example, drivers should stop any time they see a school bus’s red lights and stop sign — even if they’re ..read more

A map of the Interstate highway system made a brief splash on social media earlier this year. A lot of people who shared the map said they had no idea highway numbers followed a format. They assumed the government assigned highway numbers randomly. Congress launched the Interstate Highway System back in 1956 and marked its official completion in the early 1990s, though work is always ongoing. In case you didn’t know, here’s how the highway numbering system works: Odd-numbered Interstates Highways with odd numbers run north and south. For example, I-95 travels 1,924 miles from Miami to Maine, a ..read more

AAA says this summer might be the busiest travel season ever as Americans return to pre-pandemic vacation patterns. Even on clear, sunny days, busier roads create more dangerous traveling conditions. When a heavy summer rain shower pops up, summer driving becomes even more treacherous. Before you hit the road this summer, consider these safety tips for driving in the heavy rain: Test Your Vehicle’s Equipment Before Taking Off Do your windshield wipers, headlights, and taillights work? What about your defroster? You’ll need these systems during a heavy storm. Not sure how to check? Just ask the ..read more

They say numbers never lie. But that doesn’t mean the truth is always simple. Take the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s crash data statistics for 2023. We expect the administration to share its full 2023 data later this spring. For now, we can see only projected data. This early 2023 data shows car crashes were down. In some areas they were down a lot, which continues an encouraging trend: The number of car crashes has steadily decreased for two years. Within this positive data, we can all see a simple story. The simple story says Americans are driving more safely and more sens ..read more

Innovation drives the transportation industry. It always has. But our engine of innovation hasn’t always driven on all cylinders. For example, our national history of racial segregation stopped many 20th century African-American inventors from shaping our industry. That’s one reason Black History Month, each February, is so important. This special month gives our industry a way to celebrate African-American inventors who broke through society’s barriers and contributed to our industry. One of those contributors is Frederick McKinley Jones who grew up in Covington, Kentucky, across the Ohio Riv ..read more

If you could buy our public highway system a gift this holiday season, what would it be? Better rest areas? More lanes at the intersection that slows you down every morning? Brighter lighting on the shortcut you take once in a while? Here’s our gift suggestion: How about a stronger culture of safety to shape every decision about every road project? Yes, we know: It sounds kind of boring and bureaucratic, but we can’t help it. We’re passionate about creating a culture of safety through InfraStripe. In fact, InfraStripe exists as a traffic safety solutions platform to make everything about our ..read more